Kumho Asiana chairman to resign from his post

Kumho Asiana Group, South Korea's ninth-largest conglomerate, said Friday its chairman will step down from his post for health reasons, one year after he took office.

Park Chan-bup will resign Saturday, the group said, without providing details on the condition of his health. Park, who has worked with the group for more than 40 years, took the helm in July last year, replacing Park Sam-koo.

At that time, the group was suffering from a severe cash crunch in the wake of its purchase of Daewoo Engineering & Construction, a major South Korean builder, in 2006.

The outgoing chairman will work as a business adviser of the airline division of the group, which has South Korea's No. 2 carrier Asiana Airlines under its wing.